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leisuresuite's Golden Axe 3 (GEN)

[January 14, 2008 04:46:13 AM]

Gameplay: Session #2
OK so I take it back, there is a story story line...sort of...that is literally one line: "Now that you have been released from the curse, go and kill the evil prince and bring back the golden axe!". One short, direct, powerful line. While this story is no Star Wars, it's more then enough to get you going. For my second session I decided to play through the game alone. This seemed to make the game easier to play then with someone else in the beginning, but that notion was quickly tossed out the window once i realized it was the same amount of enemies, but one less fighter. Also, I forgot to mention that throughout the game, there are two different types of animals you can ride once you hit their masters off of their seats. One is a type of lizard/snail with a long distance tongue attack, and the other is a fire-breathing dragon. Both are very helpful once you get on them, but the problem is staying on. All it takes is one normal attack from any enemy and you're knocked off. The animals will only take so much abuse before they run off screen, never to be ridden again...until later in another level, that is.
Something else that was only in the single player mode was something that I suppose was part of the story, thought they never go much in to detail about it: every couple of levels has an unofficial boss who is actually one of the four characters you choose in the beginning, possessed by some evil spirit. Once you beat them, a flaming skull rises from their bodies and the character thanks you for your work. I would think that this has something to do with the opening line of the game, but all I can do is assume. I still found the controls to be simple and enjoyable, but the game was noticeably less exciting without some one to talk to while playing it. I quickly became bored of the repetitiveness of the slash'n'hack 'em style gameplay.

Design
As I mentioned before, there were definitely some very interesting and innovative, for its time period, anyway, elements of this game. These include: The power to decide which path your character will take, multiple times; The ability to knock foes off of their animal vehicles and commandeer them; A special attack system which changes the strength and appearance of your special attack depending on how many "magic potions" you have; And An interactive world where you can break barrels and stones to find items inside. All of these elements together make for a very intriguing and fun game. Even when I was beginning to get bored and tired of the fighting, I would still get excited every time I saw a breakable barrel. And even though I lost more health trying to get on the stupid lizard/snail then it was worth, I still tried every time to get it.
Another thing I found interesting was how the game used enemies. It was a sort of snowball effect which made it fun and challenging. As you went through the game, there would be the toughest enemy at the end of the level, as in most games. But what was special about Golden Axe 3 is that after you beat that enemy, you would see him pop up in the next level as a normal enemy. So as you progressed through the game, you would be battling the easy foes, and the medium foes, and the hardest foes all at once. I liked this because it made me feel as though my character was growing in strength and skill, though it did make it quite hard towards the end.
If I could pick just one thing to complain about in this game, it would be the depth of perception mechanic in the game. It was just plain HORRIBLE. You couldn't tell if you were standing directly in front of your enemy or slightly behind until you attacked, which, if you weren't in front of your foe, as so often was the case, made you vulnerable to their attacks. This problem caused me many a life and quite a bit of frustration. I got the hang of it by the end of my second session, but I would have preferred it to have been easier to grasp right at the beginning. otherwise, this was a very fun and enjoyable game.

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[January 14, 2008 02:50:44 AM]

Summary
Golden Axe 3 for the Sega Genesis is a side-scrolling button-masher classic. The game is very simple and straightforward; you pick one of four ripped man-beasts to play as. Each character has their own basic attack combos, consisting of punches and kicks, along with their own special moves. There isn't much of a story to follow, you just keep killing enemies and moving across the screen.

Gameplay: 1st Session
When I first began playing Golden Axe 3, I was immediately taken back to my childhood. I remember playing these fantastically simple and old-school pixelated characters and right off the bat GA3 scored major points on my awesome-o-meter. I decided to play my first session on multiplayer mode with my friend. The multiplayer mode was very entertaining and moderately difficult. This was both intentional and consequential. The game's enemies, consisting of barbarian women, skeleton dinosaurs, and fat midgets with spears, were moderately difficult on their own. Most were easily and quickly destroyed with the use of one special attack. What made the game consequentially difficult was the fact that you could easily hit your teammate accidentally and, more then often, kill them. Still, I would not criticize the game too much for this aspect because it does add to the strategy of the game.
Like I keep saying, the controls are very simple and intuitive. This is definitely a pro of the game. the easy controls made it convenient for my friend and I to converse and joke the entire time of our multiplayer experience. Admittedly, this might have greatly affected my view of the game. Neither the music nor the sound effects were very intriguing, so talking and laughing with my friend definitely would have changed the experience entirely. Something I found very impressive and surprising was the fact that every so often, the game would flash two arrows and allow the players to choose their path. of course, either path will eventually lead to the same end, but i still found that to be a very nice feature. For my next log, I will play the game on single player mode and see if I get the same excitement as the first time.

This entry has been edited 1 time. It was last edited on Jan 14th, 2008 at 04:45:52.

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